(1) "Criminal history" means a county, state,
or federal criminal history of conviction of a crime, whether a misdemeanor or
a felony, that indicates an individual (i) poses a threat to the physical
safety of students or personnel or (ii) has demonstrated that he or she does
not have the integrity or honesty to fulfill his or her duties as school
personnel. These crimes include the following North Carolina crimes contained
in any of the following Articles of Chapter 14 of the General Statutes: Article
5A, Endangering Executive and Legislative, and Court Officers; Article 6,
Homicide; Article 7B, Rape and Other Sex Offenses; Article 8, Assaults; Article
10, Kidnapping and Abduction; Article 13, Malicious Injury or Damage by Use of
Explosive or Incendiary Device or Material; Article 14, Burglary and Other
Housebreakings; Article 15, Arson and Other Burnings; Article 16, Larceny;
Article 17, Robbery; Article 18, Embezzlement; Article 19, False Pretense and
Cheats; Article 19A, Obtaining Property or Services by False or Fraudulent Use
of Credit Device or Other Means; Article 20, Frauds; Article 21, Forgery;
Article 26, Offenses Against Public Morality and Decency; Article 26A, Adult
Establishments; Article 27, Prostitution; Article 28, Perjury; Article 29,
Bribery; Article 31, Misconduct in Public Office; Article 35, Offenses Against
the Public Peace; Article 36A, Riots and Civil Disorders; Article 39,
Protection of Minors; and Article 60, Computer-Related Crime. These crimes also
include possession or sale of drugs in violation of the North Carolina
Controlled Substances Act, Article 5 of Chapter 90 of the General Statutes, and
alcohol-related offenses such as sale to underage persons in violation of G.S.
18B-302 or driving while impaired in violation of G.S. 20-138.1 through G.S. 20-138.5.
In addition to the North Carolina crimes listed in this subdivision, such
crimes also include similar crimes under federal law or under the laws of other
states.

(2) "School personnel" means any of the
following:

a. Member of the board of directors.

b. Employee of the regional school.

c. Independent contractor or employee of an
independent contractor of the regional school if the independent contractor carries
out duties customarily performed by school personnel, whether paid with
federal, State, local, or other funds, who has significant access to students
or who has responsibility for the fiscal management of the regional school.

(b) The board of directors shall adopt a policy on
whether and under what circumstances school personnel shall be required to be
checked for a criminal history. The board of directors shall apply its policy
uniformly in requiring school personnel to be checked for a criminal history.
The board of directors may grant conditional approval of an application while
the board of directors is checking a person's criminal history and making a
decision based on the results of the check.

The board of directors shall not require school personnel to
pay for the criminal history record check authorized under this section.

(c) The board of directors shall require the person to
be checked by the Department of Public Safety (i) to be fingerprinted and to
provide any additional information required by the Department of Public Safety
to a person designated by the board of directors or to the local sheriff or the
municipal police, whichever is more convenient for the person, and (ii) to sign
a form consenting to the check of the criminal record and to the use of
fingerprints and other identifying information required by the repositories.
The board of directors shall consider refusal to consent when making employment
decisions and decisions with regard to independent contractors. The
fingerprints of the individual shall be forwarded to the State Bureau of
Investigation for a search of the State criminal history record file, and the
State Bureau of Investigation shall forward a set of fingerprints to the
Federal Bureau of Investigation for a national criminal history record check.
The Department of Public Safety shall provide to the board of directors the
criminal history from the State and National Repositories of Criminal Histories
of any school personnel for which the board of directors requires a criminal
history record check.

The board of directors shall not require school personnel to
pay for the fingerprints authorized under this section.

(d) The board of directors shall review the criminal
history it receives on an individual. The board of directors shall determine
whether the results of the review indicate that the individual (i) poses a
threat to the physical safety of students or personnel or (ii) has demonstrated
that he or she does not have the integrity or honesty to fulfill his or her
duties as school personnel and shall use the information when making employment
decisions and decisions with regard to independent contractors. The board of
directors shall make written findings with regard to how it used the
information when making employment decisions and decisions with regard to
independent contractors. The board of directors may delegate any of the duties
in this subsection to the principal.

(e) The board of directors, or the principal if
designated by the board of directors, shall provide to the State Board of
Education the criminal history it receives on a person who is certificated,
certified, or licensed by the State Board of Education. The State Board of
Education shall review the criminal history and determine whether the person's
certificate or license should be revoked in accordance with State laws and
rules regarding revocation.

(f) All the information received by the board of
directors through the checking of the criminal history or by the State Board of
Education in accordance with this section is privileged information and is not
a public record but is for the exclusive use of the board of directors or the
State Board of Education. The board of directors or the State Board of
Education may destroy the information after it is used for the purposes
authorized by this section after one calendar year.

(g) There shall be no liability for negligence on the
part of the board of directors, or its employees, or the State Board of
Education, or its employees, arising from any act taken or omission by any of
them in carrying out the provisions of this section. The immunity established
by this subsection shall not extend to gross negligence, wanton conduct, or
intentional wrongdoing that would otherwise be actionable. The immunity
established by this subsection shall be deemed to have been waived to the
extent of indemnification by insurance, indemnification under Articles 31A and
31B of Chapter 143 of the General Statutes, and to the extent sovereign
immunity is waived under the Tort Claims Act, as set forth in Article 31 of
Chapter 143 of the General Statutes.

(h) Any applicant for employment who willfully
furnishes, supplies, or otherwise gives false information on an employment
application that is the basis for a criminal history record check under this
section shall be guilty of a Class A1 misdemeanor. (2011-241,
s. 1; 2014-100, s. 17.1(o); 2015-181, s. 47.)